I'm here to dicuss MMORPG ideas and thoughts.
Like graphics, visual effects, combat, content, customization, PvP, scenery, stuff like that. What would make a really good MMORPG?

I'm not making an MMORPG but my friend is and he really needs some ideas. I have a ton of ideas but I'd really like to hear some of yours, so we can help him start this out. Sooo, any ideas or thoughts? (":

A Shizu-chan MMO. You play as Shizu-chan in the Shizu-chan planet, you must collect Shizu-chans with the help of other Shizu-chans, and you must defeat the evil Izaya using only your Shizu-chan's Shizu-chan. You will build up your Shizu-chan level every time you gain a Shizu-chan. To regain your Shizu-chan, you can just eat Russian sushi, which can be bought at the Shizu-chan shop (run by Simon). You can buy your Shizu-chan the toughest armor, like bartender outfits and sunglasses. You can give him the most bad ass weapons, like vending machines and street signs. You can get the awesomest means of transportation, like walking. And if you come across a pesky Izaya, you'll just have to try and kill him. But you won't. Point it, ShizuchanMMO is a surefire idea.

The most creative mmo would be one that isn't fantasy and standard linear level based. There's just too many of those on the market right now to even fathom with competing against them. The more unique and popular mmo are without a doubt are WoW and PWE games this is because the market that they're advertising to is very broad, though both of them have very similar content so that's another thing you cannot do and copy them because you'd be called a "clone".

The least abundant type of mmo's are the science fiction genres. Even something similar to Shin megami Tensei would be nice. Though the problem would be incorporating the gaming mechanics into it. The bigger the world is and more vast it is, actually plays to the advantage of the developer. More content can be diversely dispersed to prevent the player from staying in one consolidated area. With that also comes another problem: repetition. The grind for improvement is both a pro and con. It extends the playability of the game but it also annoys players because of that. There's also the problem of people reaching level cap and not playing any further. This can be solved through a re-birthing system or class advancement to spread out skills or levels within certain skills.

Player diversity and social interaction is also a crucial component. By being easily playable as a single player or multilayer dungeon crawl style or families even is a must. Clans/ guilds are also another problem. There are some dedicated and some not so dedicated to those components so the clan creation has to have some sort of benefit or even better a must within the gameplay. Without any player interaction an mmo is basically a single player console game.

Though I could go on and on I'll put it all in short form:

Real time vs incident based: Including both types might be a cool aspect

Genre: Anything but fantasy-like fairy tale realms; Sci-fi genres are in short these days

Graphics: The higher the quality the more critics will rate it highly though there should be support to lower end graphics

Music: Appropriate and suiting without being stereotypical (also, an ingame radio or personal music player would be nice)

Forums/bbs: In game forums or bbs will be more useful than outside of the game

Visual effects: Sci-fi orientated so avoid any fantasy like elements such as magic but possibly include supernatural like esp and the sorts

Content: Spread out to an extent with a minimum of 100 hours of playtime that is not repetition or grind

Customization: This is the small yet key aspect. Character customization is what makes a certain player feel like the player. There should
not be gender locked classes or preset standard looks. A colour wheel for skin colour or hair colour, age, gender, species, blah blah, the more character customization the better for an mmo.

PvP: Is a must almost these days, the game also has to be skill based to attract a different crowd than the people dedicated to grind

Crafting system: Players collecting items from raids or just everyday activities to allow them to make items that are sold or special items

Weapon: Weapon levels that level along with players is also a cool addition seen in console but few mmos.

Abilities: A wide variety of talent trees or class to allow the player to branch off and choose what he or she wants to do.

Classes: Avoid archetypical classes and include unique classes

Revenue platform: This is also a tricky one, to even think about making a game you have to have money to support the content that needs to be added to satisfy the players. F2p with a cash shop is going to allow people to buy their way to success; though not allowing the exchange between in-game cash and real world cash is a problem because some people might have excess of either. A P2P is also tricky because it means a commitment towards something and the availability to pay the company. Though I can say that WoW is successful as a P2P and PWE are successful as Cash shop based I can't really decide based upon those.

@ZeroKill Thanks for your input! I also have tons of ideas that I'd like to share, and I have a theory/way to keep people immersed and not feel like its a repetitive game.So i'll start with the first page of notes that I have. ^^

Okay, Skill based, not level based: I want people to be able to attack with their own knowledge and skill, not just attack by how high leveled they are. Basically like any true action game. You can run around hititing them with magic or arrows or melee swords or spears, etc. And if they cant catch you, they wont be able to hit you, just like in real life. But if you're cornered, or if its actually a mob of monsters coming after you, one of them's bound to strike you unless you kill them all first. Dont get me wrong there's going to be a way to be stronger than others. Its called 'skills'. Skills would be obtained by either Skill masters or buying/finding skill scrolls in certain/hidden areas or from certain NPC merchants. And you can only "level up" the skill if you train with it enough, just like if you were to level up yourself, you'd probably grind/do quests. That's how you'd level your skills, by using them over and over to the point where you can master your skills and maybe even advance them to create a whole new skill. Simple enough.
Another way to be stronger is to get stronger weapons. The stronger the weapon the stronger you'll be. Same with defense. The stronger the armor the better defense you'll have. You can also level attributes, but I dont want to add too much emphasis on that, because then it would just be a level based game.

Visual effects: What I mean by this is how everything is seen and put into reality into the game. For instance, you won't just click on a potion that was dropped by as monster and it dissapears and shows up in your inventory a second later. I want people to actually visualise the character pick it up with their own hand, just as any one in the real world would do. And if they were to use a potion, they'd literally drink it, and you'd visually see them be healed and there energy restored. Not like some games where you just throw the potion on top of you and you see a bright glow throughout your whole body for a second then your healed. Also, you'd be able to visually see your character ripping plants out of the ground, like you would in real life, in order to obtain that plant/flower/whatever purpose it would have. Furthermore, if you step on grass it would bend just like in real life, and if there's a high wind, you would be able to see everything react to it, like the trees and plants swaying, maybe even tornados, etc. Also for mining, if you go to a mining cave and start to mine, you'd visually see all the crystals that are being mined out of the dirt, like a rare crystal or gold or something.

Interactions: In this part of the game I'd like everything and everyone to be able to interact. For example, you can push people, possibly off a cliff, or be shoved by someone while walking past them, or climb trees and jump from branch to branch (somewhat like in Naruto), and be able to cut down trees (any tree, even the tall ones!). More ideas on that but those are the few ones I really like so far. Monsters: I'm not a fan of just seeing the HP deplete, I actually like seeing the after effects of slashing a monster to its death. Also, I dont want it to take millions of slashes just to kill a mouse. Realistically, one good slit and the mouse is done for. Not two or three. And if you stab a monster, you'll visually see yourself stabbing the monster, viewing your sword sink its teeth into its bloody flesh. Kind of like God of War 3.

Class advancements: Just like any other MMORPG that has class advancements, you can advance your class & skills. You can only learn a certain higher up skill by a skill master if you advance in your own class and if you have learned another skill in which is needed to learn that skill. The two skills would obviously be related somehow. And class advancements are required so skill masters can recognize that your getting stronger, then they can teach you a new set of skills (think of Maplestory). How to gain a class advancement, I'm not entirely sure yet. Relationships: An extra piece of content that isnt entirely necessary, but still fun. You'll be able to get engaged, buy wedding rings. You can buy a dress for your girl (probably would be expensive, since most wedding dresses are), buy a tuxedo for your guy, & then get married and have a spouse. I also want to add some sort of benefit for having a spouse, so it would be more interesting, but I cant think of any right now.

"Pets": Pets will be able to train and will help you fight monsters/mobs/bosses. Like a companion. And any pet you want, but these pets come from actual monsters, not just ones you buy from a store. For example, Monsters will lay eggs from time to time, & more specifically, in a certain season (but not every monster will have that same season), and characters could be able to "steal" one of these eggs (you'd probably have to kill their mother first, since she's watching over them) and raise it on their own, and eventually could have a potentially powerful monster on your side, depending on how well you raise it, and how potentially powerful that monster could be. For example, a dragon. Kill the mom protecting her egg(s), steal the egg, wait for it to hatch (could possibly take some time, like maybe a few days), raise it, then once it's old enough, take it to battle with you. I'm thinking that monsters could have their own set of skills to learn as well. Like dragons could learn fire based skills, pixies could learn healing abilities, etc.

Non-repetitiveness: I've learned that its not just the quests that are repetitive, it can be how the quests are obtained. Who wants to go find an NPC everytime there's a new quest? Not me. Too repetitive. So, there would be multiple ways to recieve quests. For example, in the moment quests. These kind of quests are based on you, and how you will act based on the situation. Its based on your choice. Like, you see someone dying on the side of the road, you can either save that person's life, or just leave him there to die. It's your choice. AND its in the moment. Obviously if you leave that person, he's going to die eventually, and wont come back. But there may be a new dying NPC that pops up somewhere else. And if you do save him, that person will obviously reward you.

Another in the moment quest would be if you were viewing a battle taking place and decided to help, or if you just stood by and watched. If you help, you can be rewarded (or killed, if they're too hard). If you stand by, you most likely wont be rewarded at all, but you wont risk your character dying in case the battle is too hard. Of course, if you do jump in for the fight and find youself about to die alittle later, you can step aside take a breather, heal/buff youself, then jump right back in. You'll still get rewarded. Or you can just say you tried and leave, without getting a reward, or maybe a very little reward. The reward would probably come from and NPC, which would've noticed you taking part in the fight.

Another kind of way to recieve quests is when NPC's come looking for YOU. Maybe you've been building your reputation by helping alot of people, and so an NPC can either summon you or come and find you in a city/town/village. An NPC can find you even if you're on the side of the road. An idea of a quest for this is if the NPC wants to hire you to kill someone who killed her father, (basically revenge) so came after you in hopes of you helping them out. The NPC would/could take you to their house so no one would "hear", then they'd tell you all the details, and then once you've heard there story, you can either accept their offer or deny it. Again, your choice.

Finally, the last way I found out to recieve quests or hunts is to talk to them by a phone device. Not a real phone, but like a bluetooth-style mono earset which can allow you to call a specific NPC and recieve a quest that way. Or they can call you. Either way. As long as they have your number or if you have THEIRS. You can get their number from a billboard, which would have multiple numbers on it, but you can only save a certain amount on your phone (like ten or something).

You can also accept hunts this way. For example, you go to a billboard that has multiple hunt marks as well as numbers on it, then you save some of these numbers (remember you can only save a certain amount) and finally if you ever happen to cross one of these hunt marks you get your digital device and you just call one these NPC's. Then you can recieve the full rewardafter killing the hunt mark! Furthermore, hunts can be necessary to complete because they'd be needed in order to go into a hidden area possibly blocked by a door that can only be opened by a hunt master, which would recongize how many hunts you have completed (it'd be on your resume) and what specific hunts you have done. Hidden areas can have very rewarding treasure, a special boss fight, a really powerful monster/pet that you can train, etc.

Combat: So, since its going to be a true action based game, i want to add something new. For instance, if you tried to kill a monster and failed so you fled, then that monster could potentially come after you. It wont have boundaries, like in other MMORPG's, where monsters can only travel a certain distance. If the monster can see you, it will chase you. Its only boundary will be if it cant see you. If it cant see you, it will leave, back to its spawning area. So in order to escape this monster chasing you, you have to hide yourself, by climbing up a tree into a tree, turning yourself invisible with magic, dive into a nearby river or lake, etc. The saying "You can run but you cant hide" doesnt apply here.

Cutscenes: I want to add cutscenes after huge boss fights or battles or whatever big quest (probably main storyline quests) between characters and NPC's, with real voices, and subtitles and such. Just to make things more interesting. I also want to add a feeling of choice here. For example, in a quest, you save a girl from getting eaten by some huge monster, and you take her back to her village to heal her, and you find out shes a princess or whatever, and she starts to thank you and stuff. Then you can either learn more about her that can lead to a new quest or just finish it right then and there. For example, you can pick the option to ignore that she's a princess and move on, or you can ask her how she got herself in that situation, or you can ask why she lives in a little village like that if shes a princess, and that could lead to another quest. Its your choice in the cutscene, so there will be a new alternative every time.

NPC's: For NPC's to be more interactive, possibly on certain quests, they can join you and help you into whatever quest is related to them. Like, (this isnt a very good idea of a quest but whatever) say this girl left her brother in this cave and he hasnt come back, and she wants to come with you to help, because she feels awful for what she did, so she can join you(or your party, but it'd have to a be a solo party) and then you both can go save her brother while fighting monsters together along the way. Clans/Guilds: We could add benefits to being part of a guild, like getting new gear or money once every week. Or having the privilege of going to a secret area only available to people in guilds, or something. Or you can get 10% off in stores for clothing/weapons, because it's a guild discount or whatever. Just ideas.

And that is all I really have for now, not to mention all the helpful ideas that you gave me! (: So Tell me what you think. If you think something's stupid, go right ahead and say your opinion. Any thoughts would help. (:

Skill-based: definitely something I've wanted to see implemented in more games. I can't see any downside to it.

Visual effects: those are some really in-depth ones you thought of. Pretty cool, but I think the grass one is just effort that could be put into something more meaningful. And to implement all of those there would have to be options to disable them or else crash some poor guy's computer. Then again, having to go through the motions of picking up stuff and drinking potions will be a hit-or-miss with people and could become tedious since players aren't used to it.

Interactions: Again, hit-or-miss. It would be kinda cool, but since players can touch each other, I'm assuming that they can't stand in the same space which will suck in crowded areas; solution: make sure there's plenty of room/make different levels in the same area so two people could be in the same town but on different servers (sorta), like Lord of the Rings Online. And of course there'll be some people abusing the shove action.

Class Advancements: I would personally like to see a classless game. There would be trainers for certain kinds of skills, but how you build your character is totally up to you. The only problem is that there aren't any clear roles in a party and would take a lot more coordination, a thing some people don't want/are terrible at doing.

Relationships: Doesn't matter to me

Pets: Sounds great. It makes pets more special and not just something you got because you it was there. Of course with the dragon example, that mother will need to be even harder to beat than a normal dragon, like you would need a good party to kill her, and there would be four or five eggs to keep a balance. Make dragons a pet you earned.